A spiritual successor to the iconic short-form video app Vine has officially launched on the App Store and Google Play. The new app, Divine, aims to bring back the creative magic of six-second looping videos, launching with an archive of nearly 500,000 classic Vines and the ability for users to create new ones.
Quick Facts
- Vine successor backed by Jack Dorsey’s nonprofit.
- Launches with 500,000 classic Vine videos.
- Bans AI-generated content for authentic creation.
Resurrecting a Cultural Phenomenon
The project was financed by “and Other Stuff,” a nonprofit established in May 2025 by Twitter co-founder Jack Dorsey. The initiative’s goal isn’t a financial return but rather to correct what Dorsey considers a past mistake: shutting down the original Vine.
Leading the effort is Evan Henshaw-Plath, an early Twitter employee also known as “Rabble.” The team recovered hundreds of thousands of videos from backups made by the community-led Archive Team. This required writing complex scripts to reconstruct the video files along with their original engagement data like views, likes, and comments.
The app, which now hosts content from almost 100,000 original Vine creators, has already attracted the attention of early stars like Lele Pons and JimmyHere.
“It was actually the Viners who were like ‘no, no — this is way more important than just nostalgia’,” Henshaw-Plath explained. “They’re the ones who told us to wait and get it right. And so that’s what we did.”
A Stand Against ‘AI Slop’
A key differentiator for Divine is its explicit ban on AI-generated content. The platform is positioning itself as a space for human creativity, free from what its founder calls “AI slop.”
“I decided that I was going to filter out AI content because I personally don’t like seeing AI content. I don’t like feeling tricked,” Henshaw-Plath stated.
To enforce this, Divine requires users to either record videos directly within the app or use C2PA, an open industry standard, to verify the origin and edit history of any uploaded content.
Built on Open Protocols, Not Profits
Structured as a public benefit corporation, Divine currently has no revenue model. Instead, its mission is to popularize open social protocols. The app is built on Nostr and the team is experimenting with integrating Bluesky’s AT Protocol, with potential future support for ActivityPub, which powers networks like Mastodon and Meta’s Threads.
The focus is on empowering creators to control their online presence, potentially monetizing through brand deals or direct support models similar to Patreon.
“Many of us came from Vine, and it was the beginning of everything,” said original Vine creator Lele Pons. “It makes me so happy to see these early classics brought back to life, and to have the chance to make new ones.”
What This Means for MENA’s Creator Economy
While Divine is a global launch, its arrival is particularly relevant for the MENA region. The Middle East has one of the world’s most active and engaged populations on short-form video platforms like TikTok and Instagram Reels. Divine’s nostalgia-driven return could capture the attention of older millennials who were part of Vine’s original user base, while its strong anti-AI and creator-first stance offers a compelling alternative for the region’s burgeoning creator economy. As MENA’s digital content creators increasingly seek authentic platforms and direct monetization, Divine’s open, community-focused model could find a receptive audience.
About Divine
Divine is a social media app that brings back the six-second looping video format popularized by Vine. Backed by Jack Dorsey’s nonprofit, it offers an archive of classic Vine videos and tools for creating new ones, with a strong emphasis on authentic, human-made content and a commitment to building on open social protocols.
Source: TechCrunch
